There is a village nestled in the Mountains of Magnatz next to a picturesque lake. There is a tower by the lakeshore. Seven days a week, twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year, someone is in that tower looking out over the lake. This is a tradition, very strictly kept, and only the old-timers remember why it is so important. It seems that many years ago a monster named Magnatz developed a habit of periodically rising up out the lake and destroying the town. The townspeople hired a sorceress to deal with the problem, but did not pay her fairly, so the old witch played a joke on the townspeople while simultaneously keeping her end of the bargain; she cast a spell on Magnatz that would cause him to sleep under the lake as long as the village people maintained constant vigilance. It worked like a charm: as long as someone from the village manned the tower, Magnatz slept and the village was safe. But as soon as the townspeople became lazy or complacent and relaxed their vigilance, the monster would rise up out of the lake and destroy the town once again.
-Adapted from "Eyes of the Overworld" by Jack Vance.
Ground your emotions as body sensations. Use the lightning rod, the sunspot, the lava lamp, and the toll booth to keep you on track. As long as you maintain vigilance, the monster sleeps and the village is safe. If you become lazy or complacent and relax your vigilance, you will become fragmented and lose track of your natural state of peace and calm with predictably unpleasant results.
Remember Magnatz.
If you forget and the monster is released, downshift to 1st Gear immediately and note mind states and sensations as they arise. This will cause the monster to subside. When the coast is clear, you can return to 3rd Gear.
